Steam control apparatus



May 19, M N

STEAM CONTROL APPARATUS Original Filed Oct. 3, 1934 9 E CI:

Patented May 19, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE-E STEAM CONTROL APPARATUS Gilmore Mason, Yonkers, N. Y., assignor of onehalf to Lyle A. Hall, Scarsdale, N. Y.

10 Claims. (Cl. 137145) This invention is a division of my application Serial No. 746,698, now Patent No. 1,996,302, granted Apr. 2, 1935, and relates to valve control and has for an object an improved apparatus for 5 regulating the flow of fluid through pipes. More particularly, the invention relates to the operation of valves and to apparatus for the actuation thereof and contemplates the provision of an improved means for opening and closing valves at predetermined periods.

According to the invention a steam valve, for example, may be opened or closed gradually at predetermined periods. The invention aims. to control a steam valve on the main of a central 15 heating system supplying steam to buildings and the like to obtain a cyclic on-and-off operation which is preferably efiected by slowly opening and closing the valve during each cycle of operation. This cyclic on-and-oii operation may be con- 20 tinued throughout the period when heat is required. In the control of the valve supplying steam to a building, the invention contemplates opening the valve gradually in the morning to enable the escape of water during the admission 25 of the steam and to thereafter maintain it open during a predetermined period to quickly and efiiciently initiate the heating of the pipes, radiators, etc. comprising the heating system. A further object of the method of the invention is 30 to provide, in combination with the gradual opening of the valve during the morning, the cyclic operation of gradually opening and closing the valve during the subsequent period when heat is required, for example, during the daytime.

35 The apparatus of the invention comprises means for gradually opposing and overcoming the force holding a control valve closed. Such means includes a reservoir tank which is gradually filled with water to open the valve and is 40 gradually emptied of water to close the valve. The rate at which water is uniformly admitted to the reservoir tank determines the rate of opening the valve and the rate of discharging water from the tank determines the rate of closing the 45 valve. This combination of gradually filling and gradually emptying the tank completes one cycle of valve operation.

The apparatus of the invention contemplates automatic mechanism for maintaining the tank 50 filled during a predetermined period to keep the valve open and for maintaining the tank empty to keep the valve closed.

A further object of the apparatus of the invention is to provide means for regulating the 55 uniform flow of water into the reservoir tank. A

pipe having a fixed orifice is arranged to be submerged variable distances below the surface of a body .of water maintained at a desired level. 'Ihis'apparatus accordingly involves the means for imposing a uniform hydrostatic pressure on the orifice with a consequent uniform flow of water therethrough.

This invention will be better understood from a consideration of the accompanying drawing in connection with the folio-wing description, in which Fig. l is a schematic diagram of apparatus illustrating an embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation of the orifice; and

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the automatic control dial.

In the drawing, the reservoir :tank I, which is made of sheet metal, is shown suspended by the flexible cable 2 attached to the triangularly spaced eyes 3. The cable 2 passes over the frictionless pulleys 4 and 5, and is attached to the counterweighted lever 6 which actuates the stem 1 of the control valve 8. This control valve is preferably of the balanced type and controls the flow of fluid through the pipe 9. The reservoir tank I is closed on the top with the exception of a small opening through which a funnel i0 is inserted. This funnel has a curved delivery tube projecting into the reservoir to discharge water along the side of the tank. At the lower portion of the reservoir tank an extension H is provided for efiecting a positive contact, during up and down motion of the reservoir tank, with a guide pipe [2 connecting with a drainage system l3. A siphon tube i4 is placed within the tank I and so arranged that the long leg 15 thereof enters the extension H and terminates at a point well below the bottom of tank i, and the short leg [6 terminates at a point above the bottom of the tank. The lower portion of the leg I6 is flared outwardly from a section of considerably less diameter than the. leg to asection at the mouth of the funnel of greater diameter than the diameter of the leg, thus forming a cone H which merges with an orifice Fla. The leg i6 is of larger diameter than the leg J5, the latter being inserted into leg IE to a point below the top of the siphon. This results in an area of restrictive cross-section at the upper part of the siphon. Without this restrictive area there is a tendency for the water to flow through the siphon without starting the siphon action. When it is desired to keep the reservoir tank I filled, provision is made for the overflow .of water by the drain pipe l8 which discharges into the eX- tension II. For various reasons it may be necessary to make adjustments in the weight of the reservoir and this is provided by the adjustable weights I9 attached to the bottom of the tank by means of a rod.

A clock or constant speed motor 20 attached to one side of the tank I and within the housing 2| operates a dial 22 which rotates once every 24-. hours. This dial is divided into a number of segments to indicate periods of the day. Arouate cam members 23 and 24 of larger diameter than the dial fit over a shaft 26 in the center of the dial and are concentric therewith. These cams are mounted so that they may be rotatably adjusted with respect to the dial 22 and are provided with slots 25 and 26 through which the lock nuts 21 enter the dial to secure the cams in the desired position. These cams 23 and 24 overlap and accordingly their aggregate peripheral surface may be varied. The cam 28 is fastened to one end portion of the cam 24 by means of a bolt 29.

The lever arm 30 is pivotally mounted on the bracket 3| against one side of the tank I and projects through an elongated slot 32 in the opposite side thereof. The free end of the lever has a freely rotatable roller sleeve 33 mounted thereon and held in adjustable position by means of the shoulder 34 and nuts 35. A thin rod or wire 36 is connected to the lever 38 and has at one end a metal ball 31 which fits into a seat in the funnel 38 on the pipe 39. The pipe 39 connects with pipe I8 so that when the valve formed with the ball 3'! and funnel 38 is open, water may be discharged into the drain [3.

A lever 40 is pivotally mounted on the bracket 4I attached to the inside surface of the tank I and extends through an elongated slot 43 in the opposite side wall thereof. This lever, at its free end, has a rotatable sleeve 44 held in adjustable position by the shoulder 45 and nut 46. A coil spring 41 is attached to the lever 40 at one end and to an adjustable threaded cap 48 at the upper end of a bifurcated member 49 which straddles the leg I of the siphon I5 and carries at the lower end thereof a ball 50 adaptable to be inserted into the cone H for the purpose of shutting off the flow of water therethrough. The member 49 is accordingly adjustable for length by means of the cap 48.

The rollers 33 and 44 on the levers 30 and 40 respectively are positioned within the housing 2| in a plane embracing the axis of rotation of the dial 22 and directly thereabove. During rotation of the dial the arcuate cam members 23 and 24 contact the roller 35 and raise the lever 30, thus opening the valve formed by the ball 31 resting on the seat of the cone 38. As the rotation continues, a point is finally reached when the arcuate member 24 passes beyond contact with the roller 35, thus dropping the lever and seating the ball 31 in the cone 38. The cam 28 may be so positioned with respect to the cam 24 that approximately at the time when contact is broken between the cam 34 and the roller 35, the cam 28 contacts the roller 44, thus raising the same and carrying with it the lever 48 which raises the ball 50 into the cone II, thus closing the same to the passage of water. The length of peripheral surface of the member 28, therefore, determines that portion of the day when the valve 8 is held open because water is not permitted to be removed from the tank I by means of the siphon.

The supply tank 5| is positioned above the reservoir tank I and has a ball cock 52, of a type well known in the art, connected to a source of Water 53 for the purpose of maintaining a constant level of water therein. The coupling member 54 is flanged connected to one side of the tank 5I, and has a copper or other non-corrosible metal tube 55 having a double right angle bend inserted into an opening in the center thereof. The inner portion of the coupling 54 is of larger diameter than the tube 55 and is threaded to accommodate the threaded sleeve 58 which fits snugly over the tube 55 and against the packing 68, thus forming a watertight gland in which the tube is free to rotate. The tube 55 projects into the tank 5i and is below the Water level 62. The end portion of the tube 55 that is within the water tank 5i has a glass orifice 63 cemented into the end thereof and as the tube is rotated, the orifice is raised or lowered with respect to the surface of the water. The orifice may be made of porcelain, glass or other non-corrosive material and is preferably spherically shaped at the end to minimize the accumulation of matter over the opening. A nipple 54 is connected by the union 65 to the coupling 54 at one end, and to a T 65 at the other end into which is connected an open vent 6! and a water delivery pipe 88 having a stop cook 69 on the lower end thereof. The delivery pipe 58 is positioned with respect to the reservoir tank I so that when water is discharged out of the cock 69, it falls directly into the funnel I0.

In the operation of the apparatus of the invention the tube 55 is rotated in the coupling 54 to obtain a hydrostatic pressure at the orifice 63 of such amount that a uniform quantity of water, at the desired predetermined rate, will be discharged through the cook 69 into the funnel I9 and then into the reservoir tank I. By this means a constant stream of water may be discharged into the tank I.

We shall assume that the reservoir tank I is empty, the valve closed and the rollers 33 and 44 out of contact with the cam members 23, 24 and 28, the ball 31 resting upon the seat on the funnel 38 thus preventing the flow of water through the pipe 39 and that the ball 50 is suspended below the cone I'I leaving the same open. The weights I9 are adjusted to set the time in each cycle when the valve is closed and open. For example, in a cycle of one hour the weights may be adjusted so that the valve will be closed or closing for forty-five minutes and open for opening for fifteen minutes, or, open or opening for thirty minutes and closed or closing for thirty minutes. With this arrangement of the various parts of the apparatus, the water commences to rise in the reservoir tank I and when the weight thereof exceeds the force holding lever 6 down the tank commences to fall and open the valve 8. When the water reaches a point just above the top of the siphon, it begins to discharge water through the leg i5 into the drainage system I3. By reason of the relatively smaller diameter of the pipe I5 than the pipe I9, there is a positive siphon action started whenever the head of water in the tank 5 rises above the top of the siphon I4. The water is discharged from the siphon at a greater rate than it is admitted to the tank I and accordingly it begins to rise at a rate determined by the diiference between the quantities of water discharged and admitted. As the water continues to discharge a point is reached where the Weight of tank I is less than the force tending to hold lever 6 down and the tank rises closing valve 8. It will thus be seen that when the valve 8 begins to close it does so at a rate proportional to the rate of rise of the reservoir tank. The. weight l9 determines how long the tank I remains at the top or at the bottom before the fall or rise, as the case may be, commences.

When the water reaches the bottom of the conical portion I! of the tube 16, the siphon action is broken and the discharge of water from the reservoir tank is stopped. By reason of the great. difierence in area between the edge of the conical end I! and the orifice, a positive interruption in the fiow of water through the siphon is effected when the water in the reservoir tank falls to the level of the lower edge of leg IS. A suction action takes place and this results in a positive clearance between the end of the siphon and the water. At this stage of the operation the tank I has passed upwardly to its maximum height, i. e., to a point which is sufiicient to completely close the control valve 3.

After the discharge of water from the reservoir tank 1 stops, it commences to fill immediately for the reason that the water is constantly flowing therein from the supply tank 5|. As the water commences to rise in the reservoir tank I, a point is reached when it commences to move downwardly, thus raising the lever B and opening the valve 8 again. This completes a cycle of control valve operation.

When it is desired to interrupt the operation of the control valve as, for example, during the nighttime, the cams 23 and 24 on the dial 22 are set so that at any predetermined time, for example, 6 p. m., contact is made with the roller 33, thus raising the ball 31 permitting discharge of water through the pipe 33. This prevents the tank from filling and keeps the control valve closed. The cam 23 is set with its advancing edge set on a particular time mark on the disc 22 and this determines the time when the contact is made with the roller 33. As has been explained, the aggregate peripheral surface of contact of the cams 23 and 24 may be varied to contact the roller 33 for periods of different duration. Accordingly, the peripheral surface of the cams may be so arranged that they will be in contact with the roller 33 for any predetermined number of hours, as, for example, from 6 p. m. to 6 a. in When the predetermined time for opening the control valve has arrived, the cam 24 rotates beyond contact with the roller 33, thus lowering the lever 30, and the ball 31 seats in the cone 38, thus shutting off the discharge of water from the reservoir tank. The reservoir tank commences to fill and move downwardly, thus opening the control valve, and this action continues until the valve is wide open, after which the siphon action starts. At this point two variations in the automatic operation of the valve may be made; first, the siphon action may be permitted to take place as hereinbefore described, in which event the tank is emptied and the regular cycle of operation of opening and closing the valve is commenced and continued, and second, discharge of water from the reservoir tank by means of the siphon action may be interrupted by arranging the cam 28 to contact with the roller 44 and close the entrance to the siphon by raising the ball 50 into contact with the cone ll of the siphon. The tank I, therefore, fills to the level and overflows into the drain pipe 18. With this arrangement of the apparatus the tank I is positioned to hold valve 8 open. This will permit discharge of steam through the pipe 9 to the full capacity thereof for-a period determined by the time of contact ofthecam 28 with the roller 44.

The valve control apparatus: and method of the invention may be adapted. to valves used on any fluid system, for example, steam, water or gas, but are particularly adaptable to the control of steam supplied by a central generating plant. It is extremely desirable to admit steam gradually to a cold system, as when it is first turned on in the morning, because there is a rapid condensation of steam and formation ofv water, and if steam is admitted too rapidly there is apt to be a pipe hammer set up. Accordingly, the invention overcomes the disadvantages resulting from the sudden admission of steam into a cold heating system by gradually opening the valve during a predetermined period.

It is a well known fact that economies in the operation of a steam heating system may be effected by interrupting the flow of steam thereto at regular intervals during the daytime or other period when heat is desired and the invention, accordingly, provides an improved and positive means of achieving this end.

Throughout this specification reference has been made to the opening and closing of the control valve by the upward anddownward motion of the reservoir tank. The invention is not limited to an operation of closing the valve when the reservoir tank rises or opening the valve when the tank falls. Quite obviously, these operations may be reversed and are to be considered as equivalents for the purposes of the invention. Moreover, various means of transmitting the vertical reciprocable motion of the reservoir tank to the valve stem may be efiected and the invention is not to be limited to the specific suspension means illustrated.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for opening and closing a valve which comprises a reservoir tank suspended against a counter opposed control valve, means for constantly and uniformly admitting water to the tank to fill it, and automatic time means for draining the tank to keep the valve closed and for causing the tank to become filled to open the valve.

2. In apparatus for operating a valve, the combination comprising a reservoir tank in operative engagement with said valve, means for constantly and uniformly admitting water to the tank, means for causing the tank to fill periodically with water to open the valve, a siphon having an orifice at one end for emptying the tank to close the valve, and automatically controlled valve means for controlling the action of said siphon.

3. In apparatus for operating a valve, the combination comprising a reservoir tank in operative engagement with said valve, means for constantly and uniformly admitting water to the tank, a valve controlled means for permitting the tank to fill with water and open the valve, and a siphon having an orifice and conical end for emptying the tank to close the valve.

4. The apparatus in combination comprising a valve actuated by a stem, a reciprocably movable tank in operative engagement with said valve stem, means for filling the tank with water to actuate the valve stem in one direction, and a A til valve actuated by a stem, 9. reciprocably movable tank in operative engagement with said valve stem, means for filling the tank with water to actuate the valve stem in one direction, and a time controlled siphon for emptying the tank to actuate the valve stem in an opposite direction.

6. The apparatus in combination comprising a valve actuated by a stem, a reciprocably movable tank in operative engagement with said valve stem, means for filling the tank with water to actuate the valve stem in one direction, automatically controlled means for maintaining the tank filled for a desired period, and automatically controlled means for draining the tank to actuate the valve stem in an opposite direction.

7. The apparatus in combination comprising a valve actuated by a stem, 2, reciprocably movable tank in operative engagement with said valve stem, means for filling the tank with water to actuate the valve stem in one direction, automatically controlled means for maintaining the tank filled for a desired period, automatically controlled means for draining the tank to actuate the valve stem in an opposite direction, and means for maintaining the tank partially empty for a desired period.

8. The apparatus in combination comprising a valve actuated by a stem, a reciprocably movable tank in operative engagement with said valve stem, pressure controlled means for constantly and uniformly admitting water to the tank, automatically controlled valve means for permitting the tank to fill with water, a siphon for periodically draining the tank, said siphon having a short leg of larger diameter than its long leg and a, conical end, and time means for controlling the action of said siphon.

9. In apparatus for operating a valve, a s pended reservoir tank in operative engagement with said valve, said reservoir tank being mounted to move vertically under the influence of gravity and normally maintained above its lowermost position,-means for constantly and uniformly admitting water to the tank to increase the gravitational force acting on the tank and to cause the tank to descend to operate the valve in one direction, and means for causing the tank to be emptied periodically to decrease the gravitational force acting thereon, whereby the tank will rise and operate the valve in the opposite direction.

10. Apparatus for operating a valve comprising in combination a reservoir tank in operative engagement with the valve, a second tank having a fixed orifice therein and means for maintaining a uniform hydrostatic pressure on the orifice whereby water at a uniform rate is discharged 25 into the reservoir tank causing it to increase in weight and move downwardly to operate the valve in one direction, and a siphon for emptying the reservoir tank and causing it to move upwardly and operate the valve in the opposite direction.

GILMORE MASON. 

